Juli Vieira, president and CEO of the San Benito County Chamber of Commerce, reported to the Board of Supervisors and the Hollister City Council Feb. 21 how she had spent the budget that both, along with San Juan Bautista, had allocated for the Chamber’s operation.
Vieira had requested in March 2016 a projected budget of $145,000 to fund the chamber through June 2017, with $100,000 slated to come from Hollister, $15,000 from San Juan Bautista, and $30,000 from the county. To date, the Chamber has spent or obligated $70,694 of its operating budget.
She told the supervisors she was not there to ask for money, but left the city council meeting the same night hoping to secure the second $50,000 installment it had promised the year before. She told them that since the past fiscal year, the Chamber completed the new visitor guide that was released January.
“It took several months putting it together because we have not had one in our county for a long time,” Vieira said, adding that the 50,000 copies of the guide have been placed at airports in San Francisco, San Jose, and Monterey. Copies also went to the San Francisco Welcoming Center, Pier 39, Casa de Fruta, Pinnacles National Park, Mission Sun Juan Bautista, and many other locations throughout the state.
“We just went to pick up six more boxes this morning because a lot of places have already run out of them,” she said. “The Central Coast Visitors Map is in cooperation with the Central Coast Tourism Council so we can co-op with them and get it at a reduced rate.”
The map was distributed to Los Angeles and San Francisco hotels, visitor centers, six airports, and car rentals. Vieira also described the Big Blend radio program that has come to the county for the past two years to promote the area. She said views on the programs online site pages totaled nearly six million over the last 12 months.
“This was a three-year partnership and the cost to us was a little over $2,000,” she said. “We are getting our money’s worth over the last 12 months. We are in the process of developing more pages, but it does take time. They interview me once a quarter about everything that is going on in San Benito County.”
The California Road Trip Tour and the Discover Central California Coast are also co-ops with the Central California Tourism Council and Visit California, which garners a reduced rate for the county.
“We are right on the front page with Mission San Juan Bautista on Discover Central California Coast,” she said and went on to show the tri-fold brochure the chamber produced to promote Pinnacles National Park. “We printed 50,000 copies and we’re ready to go into our second printing. That is how many of these have been distributed through 206 San Jose and Santa Clara hotels, the San Jose International Airport, 223 San Francisco Hotels, the Oakland International Airport, Monterey Airport, and the Gilroy Welcome Center. It was presented at the Garlic Festival, and I just recently just did the San Francisco Bay Area Travel Show where we handed out 240 copies of our guide, 282 giveaways, 129 of the Pinnacle tri-fold, 130 San Juan Bautista Calendar of Events, and then 769 other pieces of collateral for tourism and other attractions.”
Vieira said any literature the Chamber produces about Pinnacles National Park is in high demand. She also reported that information on the county was included in Via magazine, the AAA publication.
“Two-hundred seven million copies are mailed quarterly to California, Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, and other listings,” she said. “We also have an online presence for 12 months and we have a year contract with them that will be up in September.”
She went on to say projected projects include ads the San Francisco Giants’ 2017 yearbook. The Chamber has also renewed a contract to produce more copies of the Pinnacles tri-fold brochure, another co-op opportunity to target Canadian travelers, and if funds are available, Vieira will go to the San Francisco Bay Area Travel Show in 2018. She said she would like to arrange a co-op with Gilroy Visitors Bureau in order to go to the San Diego travel show, to continue with the Big Blend radio program.
Through Dunbar Productions, which produces videos shown in Monterey hotels, she said the Chamber will promote area restaurants and attractions.
“That is a process that will take a few months to film within our community and get it on the televisions over there,” Vieira reported.
She added that there is a county advertisement in Cycle California magazine that was recommended by Off the Chains Bikes. She said the chamber is considering hiring a consultant to re-launch the Condor Classic, a bike race from San Juan Bautista to Pinnacles National Park.
Asked about the race by Supervisor Mark Medina, Vieira said she believed the last time it ran was in 2008. She said she does not have the staff to coordinate the race and that is why a consultant is needed to organize it for 2018.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho complemented Vieira for her efforts and said he has noticed the popularity of the new restaurants and how difficult it is to play a round of golf because of all the new residents and visitors.
“All this happens because of a lot of hard work and your leadership,” he said.
Vieira reminded both the city council and supervisors that they could not afford to hire a full-time employee who would work the same number of hours that the Chamber staff has done.
“I have to say you’re getting a good return on your investment,” she said.
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